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One of the reasons Sears was in such bad shape was the corporate culture; there was only one way to do things?ˆ”the way they had always been done. In order to change this attitude, Martinez kept few old-timers on when he took over, preferring instead to stock upper management with people who were specialists. Marketing is done by marketers, not retailers, for example. Before Martinez, managers who felt things were wrong were afraid to speak up, but this is no longer the case since Martinez values input and fresh ideas.

CURRENT TRENDS In the 1980s the trend was cost cutting to bring revenues up, but in the 1990s it was company growth. Focusing on the company name and strengthening brand names are strategies Martinez may have learned from Disney and CocaCola. Sears will no longer mean the big store at the mall, rather, it will invoke a brand image among customers. In 1997, out of 380 new Sears stores, 358 were freestanding specialty outlets, while only 22 were mall department stores. searscouponcodenow.com sears coupon code

Another trend relevant to the company’s direction was a newfound interest in striving to beat chief competitor J.C. Penney Co. As part of that effort, Sears launched two new private-label brands in 1997. One line, Mosaics, which is a collection of apparel by Alvin Bell, a designer for Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus stores, has been established in hopes of attracting African-American and other minority women. Distributed in Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Brooklyn, the Mosaics brand was designed in a less-colorful, up-scale fashion for casual and working apparel.

With J.C. Penney expanding its men’s apparel to include a Stafford Options line, Sears was challenged to compete. The company acknowledged that private labels are a rapidly growing sector that allow retailers to pay less for the apparel and to sell it at competitive prices. Sears was expected to further develop its own men’s lines.

In Fortune magazine’s annual survey of the country’s most admired companies, Sears was always last in the innovation category. In 1997, though, it took first place in innovation among general-merchandise retailers.

PRODUCTS Investing in Sears brands such as Kenmore, Craftsman, Canyon River Blues, and Crossroads, was the company’s strategy for keeping customers. While competitors can imitate them, cut prices, and copy features, the names of the brands themselves remain a symbol of value. searscouponcodenow.com sears coupon code

Sears has always offered service on the products it sold, eventually adding home improvements, such as siding and roof replacement, to its service division. Done by subcontracting to local contractors, this often led to inconsistent service, marketing, and pricing. Now organized under Sears Home Central, there is one phone number, a centrally-run division, and appliances are repaired regardless where they were purchased.

In addition, in the mid-to late 1990s, the company was opening hundreds of specialty outlets, focused on hardware, furniture, and automotive. The company’s goal was to have 5,000 stores by the year 2000, with 4,000 of them freestanding. Independently owned rural stores, were also being added. Sears supplies the tools, appliances, electronics, and the Sears sign. The local owners receive commissions on sales, and Sears gets access to rural customers.

CHRONOLOGY: Key Dates for Sears, Roebuck and Co.

1886:

Richard Sears starts the R.W. Sears Watch Co.

1887:

Sears hires watchmaker Alvah Roebuck 1889:

The watch company is sold and Sears, Roebuck, & Co. forms as a mail-order company 1895:

Alvah Roebuck leaves the company 1896:

The company introduces its first catalog 1908:

Richard Sears leaves the company 1924:

Sears, Roebuck & Co. opens its first retail store 1925:

Launches a tire line 1931:

Begins offering auto insurance through the subsidiary Allstate Insurance Co.

1942:

The first foreign Sears opens in Havana, Cuba 1959:

Sears purchases Hobart Development shopping centers 1969:

Sears begins building their new offices in downtown Chicago 1974:

The 110-story Sears Tower, the tallest building in the world, opens 1981:

Buys Dean Witter Reynolds stock brokers 1985:

Establishes the Discover credit card 1993:

Sells 20 percent of Dean Witter and Allstate Insurance and all of Caldwell banker and Sears Mortgage Banking 1995:

Sears sells the Sears Tower and moves the company headquarters 1997:

The company launches two private-label clothing brands

CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP Teaming up with 17 Shriner’s children’s hospitals nationwide, Sears sponsored the Batteries for Kids program. For every auto battery returned to a Sears store, the program donates $1 toward batteries for children’s wheelchairs. Another community venture was Sears’ partnership with Gilda’s Club, a nonprofit organization giving emotional and social support to cancer victims and their families. Named for comedienne Gilda Radner who died of ovarian cancer in 1989, Gilda’s Club was to receive $1 million over a five-year period from Sears. Another joint effort to provide community services was a $1 million pledge with pop singer Gloria Estefan to local youth service organizations. The program, called OYE!, has given $20,000 in each tour city to one nonprofit organization that assists youth volunteers in dealing with pressing issues in their communities.